Imperfectly Perfect
by dellblack
Summary: Marauders.  This is the story of two groups of friends and how they became inexorably interconnected.  Through love and hate, jokes and drama, laughs and cries, Lily and James relationship changes.  JPLE   SBOC   RLOC


"LILS! MY LITTLE PREFECT!" A vivacious brown-haired girl shouted across the street, having just entered Diagon Alley. Danielle Mayden was a uniquely extraordinary girl. Her long curly hair bounced atop her shoulders with her brilliant blue eyes twinkling at the sight of her best friend. Her freckles splashed across her face, although they had become much more faded since she was a First Year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She was bubbly. She was passionate. She was Lily Evan's very best friend.

Lily Evans blushed slightly, fighting the color that was threateningly rising in her cheeks. She was well-liked and caught the eye of many young men at Hogwarts. However, she was not nearly as outspoken as Danelle, who seemed to thrive on friendly banter and meeting new people. Lily was not timid, but, rather, she was down-to-earth. It was difficult to rile Lily Evans. She enjoyed the company of others, but never made herself the center of attention. This did not stop her from catching the attention of many wandering eyes, though. She did enjoy simple flirtations. She liked dates. But, Lily Evans did not like relationships. Oddly enough, it was Danielle who prized relationships over dates.

"Oi! Does the whole of Diagon Alley need to know I'm a prefect? How did I ever get myself such an embarrassing best friend…?" Lily teased.

"I just want to shout my congratulations from the top of Gringotts!" Danielle smiled and laughed lightly, the thought of climbing to the top of Gringotts capturing her attention momentarily.

"Oh, you know you could have been a prefect if you wanted! You study almost as much as me and you're brilliant outside the classroom. If you weren't so obsessed with quidditch and your Aurors club, you might have actually considered having the position," Lily joked back.

"Aw Lils. Don't be modest! You know I procrastinate way too much to ever be counted on as a prefect. I'm a procrastinating perfectionist, a real deadly combination… just ask McGonagall," Danielle responded, remembering the time she fell asleep in transfiguration the previous year only to sleep-talk about hexing Sirius Black into oblivion.

Lily laughed remembering the hysterical scene. Although she did feel sympathy for her friend's embarrassing situation, she could not help snort remembering Sirius Black's slightly alarmed expression when he heard Danielle's threats.

"I can't believe I fell asleep that class! I didn't bother starting that assignment until 10 at night. Of course, good ol' McGonnie _had_ to make it a 5 foot scroll. Sometimes, I really think she is out to get me."

"Dani, you shouldn't be complaining. You still got an O… oh, and that detention. And you wouldn't have fallen asleep if you hadn't been busy screaming at the top of your lungs at Black in the common room for an hour the night before," Lily teased.

"Oi, come off it, Lils. You know it was his fault! He kept making fun of my freckles like the prat that he is. Well, he needs a haircut. So, he can say all that he wants about my looks, but he's the ugly one. Plus, it was the first time I've ever fallen asleep in class! Minerva dearest should have given me a break. She knows what it's like to deal with Black."

The girls were now in line at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. They finally noticed someone clearing their throat rather loudly behind them, while another someone suppressed a laugh.

"Can't stop talking about me, my sweets?" A strikingly handsome boy with longer, wavy dark hair good-naturedly said. He grinned widely, showing all of his perfectly white teeth which contrasted his tanned skin and quidditch-toned muscles in just the right way.

"Sod off, Black. You're worse than the Giant Squid." Danielle turned back around, adding as an afterthought, "and I certainly can stop talking about you! I am proud to say that I have not thought of you once this entire summer. And, as a matter of fact, I do not plan to think of you for this entire year. My summer has been going so splendidly, I see no reason to ruin it now by acknowledging your presence. So, if you don't mind, run away and go hit on some fourth year Slytherins. Hey James! Remus! Fabian and Radley!! I haven't seen you in so long!" She just noticed the other four boys next to Sirius. She smiled at James, her quidditch teammate. She gave Remus a quick peck on the cheek, though he was already in conversation with Lily discussing their prefect duties. Danielle then embraced both Fabian and Radley, two boys from Ravenclaw in their year.

Sirius cheekily turned to Danielle, interrupting her conversation with Radley and Fabian. "Well, I'll have you know that the Giant Squid is really not that bad."

Remus rolled his eyes at his friend's antics, while James chimed in. "Yeah, he's a real buddy of mine."

Lily snorted. "That's not too surprising, Potter. You both have giant heads, smell horribly, belong permanently underwater, and lack the most essential social skills."

James, his messy hair refusing to lay flat, smiled devilishly back at Lily. "Nice to see you're still as vibrant as ever, Evans."

Sirius whimpered in the background. "Hey guys! I thought it was my turn to fight."

"Grow up, princess," Danielle shot back at him.

"Who you calling princess, princess?"

"You, or are you so daft that you don't know your own name?"

"You know what, Mayden, I think you are jealous."

"Of…?"

"My charm and good looks."

"You look like a toad and I was completely unaware you possessed any charm."

"So, you haven't noticed all the girls I go on dates with? Because I could have sworn I heard you muttering about how stupid all the girls in my fan club were, but you would have had to notice that I had a fan club if you were saying that. Isn't that right, Moony?" Sirius said haughtily, turning to Remus for confirmation.

Remus was the level-headed one of his friends. He could still play an excellent joke and turn on his charms when needed, but he tended to be popular for his kind-heart and soft-spoken nature. He had gray eyes and olive skin, with longer dirty-blonde hair that suited him nicely. Remus just shook his head at Sirius, refusing to confirm his friend's claim to having all the girls love him.

Radley Tompkinson was the one to respond to Sirius. Radley was a witty boy, with a sharp mind and good heart. He was also handsome, with his blue eyes, tanned skin, and blonde hair. "Come on now Dani. In all fairness, Sirius has wooed his fair share of girls at Hogwarts." He slung an arm across Dani's shoulder.

"Whatever, Rad. I still think he's a prat." Dani cast one last look at Sirius before stalking off to the robes shop having forgotten all about her ice cream.

"Oi, Padfoot. You gotta give her a break. We're never going to make it through this quidditch season if you two can't try to get along. You got her so upset she forgot her ice cream, she never forgets to eat!" James said.

Lily quickly slapped James upside the head, warranting a groan from James. Dani loved food. She could outeat even the Marauders. You would never be able to tell this just from looking at her. She was 5'7" with a thin frame. Lily glared at James. "Is quidditch all you care about, you bloody idiot!"

"Oi! What was that for? I was sticking up for your friend!"

"No, you were caring about the personal glory you will gain from a quidditch victory. You completely disregard the fact that your friend hurt my friend's feelings," Lily quipped.

"Get off your high horse, Evans. I was just trying to be helpful."

Everyone groaned, even Sirius. They all knew this was the wrong thing to say to Lily Evans. She quickly turned and left the ice cream parlor, hoping to find Dani quickly.

Sirius turned to James. "You know, Prongsie, even I know better than to anger our favorite redhead. Then again, she doesn't seem to ever get angry at anyone except for you…"  Remus nodded, saying how pleasant Lily actually was to work with in Charms class.

"I think she's very nice. I once even saw her hex Bellatrix for teasing a third year Gryffindor," Fabian laughed remembering.

"Lily EVANS hexed someone?" James gasped, while Sirius grimaced at the thought of his miserable cousin Bellatrix.

Just then, Flora Wicks and Tessa Potter walked into Florean Fortescue's.

Theresa, or Tessa as she was more often called, walked up to her cousin. "Hey Jamesie, have you seen Lily or Dani? We were supposed to meet them in here a few minutes ago."

James just groaned and pointed in the direction of the dress robes shop.

Turning to Remus and Sirius, he reminded them they were supposed to meet some Hufflepuffs at the SandWitch. Walking off down Diagon Alley, James couldn't help but wonder if Lily Evans was always going to hate him. Pushing this thought to the back of his mind, he started brainstorming their next prank with Remus and Sirius. Rodolphus Lestrange sure wouldn't like this one. They all grinned happily amongst themselves, turning to smile at their fifth year dates Marcia Ladelbagen from Ravenclaw, and Candy Puffski and Loretta Bartlet from Hufflepuff.


End file.
